2016 World Championship discussion

[cyberheater]

Okay. Selby in the final. I don't think I'll bother watching this.

Good luck Ding.

[throtts]

Determination my arse, his only aim to to bring his opponents down and break their concentration with his endless walking around the table, pointing his cue at something, getting down, getting up, getting down again, getting up and taking yet another walk to point his cue where he has already pointed it, taking breaks between every frame, playing deliberately to invoke the miss rule to gain points with shots to nothing so he can play the roll up snooker.
I absolutely detest the way he plays and the I absolutely detest the referees who let him get away with it. Will be hard for me to get any motivation to watch the final, hope Ding hammers him, but if the ref allows it, as he will, then he will do exactly the same to Ding.

Completely disagree with you, Steve.

Its his style of play. One way to combat it, take your chances against him when you get them, simple as that.

Selby plays snooker,,, hard match snooker. Any pro player should be ready for him when they draw him.

Selby's safety play is amazing too. However, sure the cue ball by luck glanced off the middle pocket jaw to lay that last nasty snooker yesterday evening to create and make all those misses awarded, not sure if you guys see that or if I need to see it on the box again. Anyway, they both deserve their WC Final appearance.

[thommo335]

Okay. Selby in the final. I don't think I'll bother watching this.

Good luck Ding.

Amen bro. Hope the weather gets better soon so I can find something else to do rest of the weekend

[cyberheater]

Completely disagree with you, Steve.

Its his style of play. One way to combat it, take your chances against him when you get them, simple as that.

Selby plays snooker,,, hard match snooker. Any pro player should be ready for him when they draw him.

Selby's safety play is amazing too. However, sure the cue ball by luck glanced off the middle pocket jaw to lay that last nasty snooker yesterday evening to create and make all those misses awarded, not sure if you guys see that or if I need to see it on the box again. Anyway, they both deserve their WC Final appearance.

None of that negates the fact that he's one of the most boring players to watch and lots of folks really dislike the way he plays the game.
It wouldn't surprise me if the tv viewing figures are pretty low for the final. I'm not expecting a packed crowd either.

[Odrl]

I had a few thoughts ahead of the World final, but after JimMalone's post I think there is nothing to add really, as I agree with it entirely. :smile:

I've had a strong suspicion Ding Junhui would become World champion for at least a week now, and it's only got stronger after his semi-final display against McManus. He equalled Hendry's record of seven centuries in a single match, and he only needs four more now to equal Hendry's tournament record of 16 from the 2002 World Championship. A few days ago I described Ding's approach to matches as "the O'Sullivan plan". He starts really strongly, knocking a couple of big breaks in, and it puts enormous pressure on his opponent for the entire match. It doesn't always work, McManus in particular handled it brilliantly and came back to within a frame from 9-3 down, but that just makes Ding's win even more impressive, since he won comfortably even though his opponent never cracked. He does show more emotion than he used to, but his poker face this week has reminded me a lot of some of the early titles he won, such as the 2005 UK Championship. He looks fully focused on the job, scoring heavily when in the balls, and playing with great calm and concentration when the balls go scrappy. That said, the vast majority of his frames against McManus were very open and "clean", so to speak, so it will be interesting to see what happens against Selby, a player whose games inevitably go scrappy when he is not at his best. These two have played many good matches over the years, but it's worth noting that Ding has won the two most important ones, the quarter-final of the 2011 World Championship and the final of the 2012 Welsh Open. These are also the only two times they have met in a long match before today.

If one of the players had to concede this match for some reason, I think Ding would still be seen as a worthy World champion, whereas Mark Selby probably wouldn't. He hasn't really played world-class snooker so far, but there is still time, and Selby has a habit of playing his best snooker when it matters the most. He was outscored by Fu in their semi-final, but he kept winning important frames to stay ahead, and he played some good tactical snooker to get over the line in the end. He has the advantage of having played a World final before, two World finals in fact, and both of them followed a similar pattern, with Selby going behind on the first day and coming back really strongly on Monday. He has had a really tough semi-final again, so I wouldn't be surprised if it took him a while to recover this time as well. Until last night I was convinced he didn't want it as badly as in 2014, which would be understandable of course, as the difference between one or two World titles is not the same as the difference between one and none at all, but his reaction after getting the kick and losing position in the final frame last night showed he really wants to win this. He won't care if the match is one big struggle, as long as he gets to 18 frames first. The question is, can he impose his pace and style on the match, or will Ding take control of it early on?

If I had to chose two finalists before the tournament started, I can't think of many better choices than Ding against Selby, so I'm sure I will enjoy every minute of it. Ding has a chance to complete the triple crown here, which would put him alongside Selby and Neil Robertson (and ahead of Murphy) in career achievements, and he still has a few years to go before he is their age. I think this would be a fitting reward for all the great snooker he has given us in recent years, and it would please me to see him prove all the doubters wrong. At the same time, Selby winning a second World title would no doubt annoy a lot of people, and we can expect a few obnoxious characters to emerge again and express their profound hatred for him throughout this final, so I hope he does his best to ruin their day. I think last year was the first time I called the World final wrong, so let's make it right this year...

My great wish is for an 18-17 either way at midnight, but my prediction is that Ding will win with a few frames to spare. Selby will give it everything, as usual, but I think his form will ultimately let him down. Ding, on the other hand, looks just as determined to win it as Selby does, but he has the form to back it up, and he has looked and played like a World champion all tournament. Ding Junhui to win 18-14.

[vmax4steve]

Completely disagree with you, Steve.

Its his style of play. One way to combat it, take your chances against him when you get them, simple as that.

Selby plays snooker,,, hard match snooker. Any pro player should be ready for him when they draw him.

Disagree all you like, I know what I'm witnessing.
No one needs to take so long to play hard match snooker. The shots he plays are seen early enough for him to simply get down and play them quickly, the time he takes and the way he goes about it are a deliberate tactic to break his opponents concentration. I'll be in the garage this long weekend making cues and fettling my motorbikes, good luck to Ding, if I was refereeing he wouldn't need it as I would warn Selby for ungentlemanly conduct to the point of awarding a frame if neccessary.

[Le Ball Sack]

Hasn't that ever happened in the TV stage or qualifier stage?

Disagree all you like, I know what I'm witnessing.
No one needs to take so long to play hard match snooker. The shots he plays are seen early enough for him to simply get down and play them quickly, the time he takes and the way he goes about it are a deliberate tactic to break his opponents concentration. I'll be in the garage this long weekend making cues and fettling my motorbikes, good luck to Ding, if I was refereeing he wouldn't need it as I would warn Selby for ungentlemanly conduct to the point of awarding a frame if neccessary.

[Billy]

Determination my arse, his only aim to to bring his opponents down and break their concentration with his endless walking around the table, pointing his cue at something, getting down, getting up, getting down again, getting up and taking yet another walk to point his cue where he has already pointed it [snip]

My sentiments and viewpoint exactly. Painful to watch. With any luck Ding will spend most of his time at the table, and we can at least see someone playing entertaining snooker.

[The Rook]

To me, Ding is as strong as Selby, defensively speaking. He can snooker an opponent like no one so I think it's a draw in that sector. Both are master tacticians. Where Ding has a huge advatange is that he is much more of a heavy potter than Selby is. This is is strength: a murderer at the table when in amongst the balls. Selby, as good as he is, doesn't have that potting quality. Ding is by far a much more complete player than the Englishman.

I think general consensus is that Selby is one of the most complete players there has ever been, at least this opinion seems to be touted by some of the more successful pros. Interestingly, Selby has scored more career centuries than Ding, so there is nothing wrong with Mark's scoring potential. The problem is that Selby is playing like a meek shadow of the player he was a few years ago. If Mark finds his A-game I think he will have too much for Ding, but I doubt grinding alone will be enough unless Ding folds.

[PatBlock]

For the first time ever I have exactly the two players contend the final who I wanted before the start of the tournament to be there in the end. Whoever wins my dream final I'll be happy.
Usually I maybe like Selby a bit more and while I think he deserves a second world title Ding really deserves to win one more than everybody else. My only big wish for the final is that it won't be a one-sided affair.

This is pretty much the way I feel. I know I'll be elated for the winner, and gutted for whoever loses. But for me, the balance of favour is tipped slightly to Ding's side, it really is about time he won this thing, and I think he will. He's close to the top of his game right now while Mark is far from it. I can't see either completely running away with it, so your score of 18 - 14 sounds about right to me.
Lets hope it's the classic it has the potential to be.

C'mon lads, give us a good'n!

-

[daffie]

For the first time ever I have exactly the two players contend the final who I wanted before the start of the tournament to be there in the end. Whoever wins my dream final I'll be happy.
Usually I maybe like Selby a bit more and while I think he deserves a second world title Ding really deserves to win one more than everybody else. My only big wish for the final is that it won't be a one-sided affair.

This is pretty much the way I feel. I know I'll be elated for the winner, and gutted for whoever loses. But for me, the balance of favour is tipped slightly to Ding's side, it really is about time he won this thing, and I think he will. He's close to the top of his game right now while Mark is far from it. I can't see either completely running away with it, so your score of 18 - 14 sounds about right to me.
Lets hope it's the classic it has the potential to be.

-

Well let me second (third?) this!

Now...let's get this classic Final underway....

:snooker:

[Billy]

That painting is awful. Sorry to the artist, but it is.

[neuronic]

I want a decider.

[Billy]

That old woman is asleep already!

[Le Ball Sack]

What are you doing Ding!